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Saturday, March 04, 2006

I love tacos but I am no more a taco expert than the next guy. I just like what I like. I like soft well oiled corn tortillas, charred juicy cuts of carne asada, savory bits of al pastor and a salsa roja that makes me reach for that cold beverage.

I may be different in that when I see a taco truck on the side of the road I have the impulse to pull over and do a taco dance but aside from that I am just like you.

So I pulled up to Tacos Don Beto, a taco trailer at pico and cochran ave (4 blocks west of La Brea) and took in the scene. There were chairs set against the storefront of a meat market and a table adjacent to the trailer with tubs of salsas, onions and jalapenos.

I was really hungry for some tacos and the man inside the truck knew that I was ready cuz ye yelled "amigo!...que quires?" I think he could tell that I was one of those spanish speaking gringos. I didn't let my new friend down and ordered dos tacos de asada y un de pastor.

After I ordered I noticed they also had buche and barbacoa but I didn't want to upset my new friend by changing the order. For some reason it always lifts my spirits when someone is nice to me especially when asking what kind of tacos I want. The man in the truck was so excited to see me and he didn't even know that I am Bandini, the taco correspondent for the great taco hunt. Some days I dont even know I am Bandini either. I will wake up and get hungry for tacos and it will occur to me that "oh yeah I am that guy" and then I will go eat tacos.

So my tacos came pretty quickly and I poured some salsa on them from one of the containers on a table next to the truck. They had a dark salsa roja, a guacamole salsa and a salsa verde. I always go with roja because the chances of a guacamole salsa or a verde being spicy enough to make me reach for my cold beverage aren't very high.

The al pastor surprised me because at first glance it looked rather boring and without much seasoning but as I bit into it the soft and tender pork really excited me and combined with the soft well oiled tortillas and dark salsa roja made for a great taco.

The asada at first look didn't impress me either but after dressing it with onions, cilantro and some salsa roja and biting into it I was again surprised by how soft and tender the meat was. This is by far the most tender meat I've had on this taco journey so far. I like a charred asada as much as the next guy but sometimes you like something that tastes like it's been carefully prepared.

No wonder the man inside the truck was so happy, he makes great tacos.

3.5/5

Don Betos is on Pico Blvd and Cochran ave(4 blocks west of La Brea) Tacos are $1 each

Oh MAN was this good. They know their seasonings, both in the salsa and on the meats themselves. Smoky, rich, complex...astounding. The pastor is a bit dry, yes, but fabulous. And the radishes were actually fresh! Amazing!

There's something about standing on a sidewalk on a glorious summer evening in Los Angeles, looking west down Pico Boulevard at the skyline of Century City and eating badass tacos.